Insulated rail-joint.



Patented Dec. 5,1916.

2 SHEETS SHEET I.

L. F. BRAINE.

INSULATEURAILJOINT.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.17. 1914.

1 ,QU? Patented Dc. 5, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

I Q N amve/wtcz rrnn sra rns PATENT onnrnn LAWRENCE F. BRAIN E, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO THE RAIL 3' DIN T COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

INSULATED RAIL-JOINT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 5, 191 6.

Application filed August 17, 1914:. Serial No. 857,171.

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, LAWRENCE F. BRAINE, a citizen of the United States, residing at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Insulated Rail-Joints, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improvement in insulated rail joints particularly of the Weber type, and primarily hasin view novel means foreflectually protecting the insulationfrom destructive forces, and also facilitating renewal thereof.

Accordingly, the object of the present invention is to-provide a novel and useful arrangement-of the insulation for rail joints of the VVeber' type, whereby more satisfactory results may be obtained than with the conventional disposition of insulation as ordinarily employedin this joint. That is to say, inthese joints an insulating shoe-plate is usually employed with the upright mem-' ber'thereof disposed between the outside filler and the upright bolting plate of the shoe angle, thereby leaving the inside ofthe joint open in the sense of exposing the 1nsi'de edge of the base member of the insulation, as 'well as the inside edge of the rail flange. This makes the joint more or less free for the entrance of dirt, cinders, water, and other foreign substances between the bottom of the'rail and the upper face of the base'member of the insulating shoe plate, and these foreign substances, when present, become a destructive agency dueto the constant poundingand chafing between the rails-andjoint plates, resulting in'excessive wear-and rapid deterioration of the insulation." A' further objection to the conventionalarrangement of insulation referredto is'that when the insulating shoe-plate is worn out and requires renewal,- it is necessary to'dismantle the joint with the eXception' of the wooden filler blocks, and this dismantling necessarily renders the track unsafe for trafiic until the new fiber shoe plate andthe other joint'parts have been re-' assembled and fastened together. These objections to-an insulating shoe plate arranged with its upright member atyth'e outside of the joint, that is, between the outside filler and the bolting plate of the shoe angle, are entirely obviated and overcome by the improvement of the present *invention which not only provides for covering the inside corner of the oint adjacent and about the inner rail flange, so as to effectually exclude destructive foreign substances, but also in-' facility and without dismantling the joint.

sufliciently to interfere at all with traflic.

. With these and other objects in View which will more readily appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in the novel construction, c0mbination, and arrangement of parts herein after more fully described, illustrated, and claimed.

The essential feature of the invention in volved in the novel arrangement of an insulating shoe plate is necessarily susceptible of modification and embodiment in different forms of construction without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention, but for purposes of illustration, certain practical forms of the invention are shown in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a vertical cross sectional view of the joint on the line 1-1 of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the inside of a rail joint of the Weber type illustrating the invention embodied in a one-end insulated rail joint. Fig. 3 is a detail elevation of the short insulating shoe plate employed in a one-end insulated joint of the type shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a similar view of the compensating steel shoe plate forming a part of the said joint shown in Fig. 2.

Like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the several figures of the drawings.

As indicated, the improvement constituting the present invention is of special utility in-its application. to the Weber type of in sulated rail joint, and may be adapted thereto without any material change or structural alteration therein, and yet contributing the added advantages of securing a better and more thorough protection of the insulating shoe plate, and greatly facilitating renewals thereof. Accordingly, for illustrative purposes. there shown in the drawings a Weber joint of the wellknown form including, in combination with the rails 1, the usual steel shoe angle 2 having a rail supporting base plate 3 and the upright girder bolting member 4. Thisform ofjoint 1 character described includes the bolt insulation referred to, an insulating end post 10 between the meeting ends of the rails, and afiber or equivalent insulating shoe plate 10 corresponding in its angular form to that of the shoe angle 2 and comprising a horizontal base member 11 and an upright member 12 arising from one edge'of the base member 10 and integrally or rigidly united therewith. The important consideration of the. present invention is to arrange the in sulating shoe plate 10 in such a manner as to secure the novel and useful results referred to. In this connection it will be ob served that the said shoe plate, while nested within the shoe angle 2, is disposed in an opposite position so that the upright member 12 of the shoe plate is located at'the opposite side of the rails fromthe upright member of the shoe'angle, and hence'lies at the inside of the joint, In this position, the

7 horizontal base member 11 of the insulating shoe plate performs its usual insulating functions between the rail baseand the upper side of the rail supporting base plate 3 of the shoe angle, while the upright member 12 of the said insulating shoe plate acts in the additional capacity of a cover which entirely covers and incloses the inside edge of the rail flange. In fact what may be termed the entire inside bottom corner of 7 the joint is covered thereby so that means are thus provided for effectually excluding dirt, cinders, water, and other foreign substances; between the bottom of the rail and upper face of the base member of the'insulating shoe plate, with the result of greatlyincreasing the life of the shoe plate withinthe joint.

A convenient and practical means of removably clamping the insulating shoe plate inside filler 6, as at 18, to accommodate therein the upright cover member 12 of the in its operative position within the joint is illustrated in the drawings, and preferably:

consists in recessing the outer face of the shoe plate, therebypermitting the inside metal bolting strap 7 to be firmly clamped not only against thesaid inside filler mem her 6,- but also against the said upright cover member ofcthe shoe plate. In addition to r 7 the clamping engagement of the'inside boltingstrap'j against the shoe plate, proper maintenance of the latter within the joint is safeguarded by preferably forming the. upright cover member 12 of the shoe plate with keeper notches 14c in the top edge there- ;of. These keeper notches permit the upper edge of the insulating cover member 12 to project above the bottom line of the joint bolts, which therefore are disposed within the keeper notches and combine therewith to provide means for preventing undue longitudinal movement or displacement of the shoe angle while the joint is subjected to traffic conditions.

By reason of the novel arrangement described for the insulating shoe plate 12, it will be observed that the same not only provides the effectual inside cover above explained, but with this construction and arrangement, when the said shoe plate requires renewal, it is merely necessary to remove the nuts, 18 the washers, 19 and the inside metal bolting strap 7, whereupon by slightly raising the rails, the old insulating shoe plate can be readily drawn out of the joint and a new one slipped in place, without the joint having been dismantled sufliciently to interfere with the traflic.

The invention may be applied to a oneend insulated type of joint by using the insulating shoe plate unit under the leaving rail and combining therewith a compensating steel shoe plate 15 arranged under the receiv ing rail. This compensating shoe plate 15 corresponds in form to the insulating shoe plate, that is to say, it is of angle formation having a horizontal rail supporting base member 16 interposed between the rail base and the upper side of the shoe angle base 3, and an upright member 17 clamped between the inner filler 6 and the inside bolting strap 7. Likewise, the upper edge of the compensating shoe plate 15 has formed therein the keeper notches 14 receiving the joint bolts and combining therewith to provide the same interlocking function as provided for by the bolts and the keeper notches 14 of the insulating shoeplate. In this form of the invention, however, the intermediate keeper notch in the upright member of the insulating and metal shoe plates, is of an elongated form, as shown, to compensate for variations in the position of the bolt engaging therein, as will occur under some conditions.

'I n theapplication of the invention to the one-end insulated tvpe of joint as shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 4 of the drawings, it is preferable to observe the insulating detail of having theinsulating shoe plate 10 of a slightly greater lengththan one-half the length of the joint, so that the inner end of the said shoe plate forms what may be termed an apron extension 20 which overlaps and projects slightly beyond the joint between the meeting ends of the rails, thereby prevent-v ing anypossibility of short circuitsor 'currrent leakage being established between the inner end of the steel shoe plate 15 and the leaving rail of the joint. Furthermore, another feature of practical importance in the maintenance of a joint of this character is that of having the steel shoe plate 15 entirely free to be separately handled instead of being riveted or otherwise secured to the base plate 3 of the shoe angle, as is quite commonly done. Consequently, by reason of making the compensating steel shoe plate 15 a free element, either end of the joint can be provided with the steel shoe plate or With the insulating shoe plate, thus avoiding the use of right hand and left hand arts. p It will be understood that various changes in form, proportion, and minor details of construction may be resorted to Without altering the invention or departing from its principles.

I claim:

1. An insulated rail joint including the rails, a shoe angle, an insulating shoe plate lit arranged under the one rail and having an upright member disposed at the side of the joint opposite the upright member of the shoe angle, said insulating shoe plate having an apronextension overlapping the oint at the meeting ends of the rails, and a metal shoe plate having a position Within the shoe angle beneath the other rail corresponding to the position of the insulating shoe plate.

2. An insulated rail joint including the rails, a shoe angle, and separate insulating and metal shoe plates of corresponding form removably arranged respectively under the separate rails of the joint, and each having its upright member disposed at the inside of the joint and forming a protecting cover for the inside bottom corner of the joint.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

LAWRENCE F. BRAINE.

Witnesses:

E. K. KERSHNER, BENJ. WOLHAUPTER.

(topics of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I). C. 

